Tech Billionaires Benioff, Dorsey Square Off Over How To Deal With Homelessness

Marc Benioff spoke about the tech community's responsibility to address homelessness in San Francisco at the opening ceremony of Salesforce Tower in May. (Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg)

Billionaire technology titans Marc Benioff and Jack Dorsey don't exactly see eye to eye on how to fix the homeless problem plaguing San Francisco.

The pair took to Twitter on Friday to voice their opposing viewpoints on a ballot measure before San Francisco voters this November called Proposition C, which would tax local businesses to raise money in support of homeless programs.

Salesforce cofounder and CEO Marc Benioff, who has been outspoken about the need he sees for tech companies to play their part in addressing homelessness in San Francisco, has come out in support of Prop C and tweeted on Friday: "Homelessness is all of our responsibility which is why we are supporting Prop C. Together, as one San Francisco, we can take on our city’s most complex & difficult problems."

The ballot measure seeks to impose a corporate tax on businesses with over $50 million in gross receipts, at a rate of up to 0.69%. The funds would go toward homelessness services in the area. San Francisco and other major cities across the U.S. have struggled with increasingly large homeless populations.

Benioff has committed $500,000 to support the Prop C campaign and plans to spend another $1 million or more on his own advertisements in support of the proposition, he told the San Francisco Chronicle.

Meanwhile, Jack Dorsey, who is cofounder and CEO of both Twitter and Square, is one tech executive who doesn't see Prop C as the right solution to the problem. "I want to help fix the homeless problem in SF and California. I don’t believe this (Prop C) is the best way to do it," he tweeted in response to Benioff.

Another tech billionaire, Stripe cofounder and CEO Patrick Collison, quickly chimed in: "Am with Jack. Marc is well-intentioned, but I trust Mayor Breed's expertise on homelessness over his," he tweeted.

San Francisco's mayor London Breed, who was elected in June, came out in opposition of the ballot measure last week. She has been joined by the city's chamber of commerce. Breed said in a statement that addressing homelessness is her "top priority" but that there isn't enough accountability built into the current proposition. She and other critics have also argued that the proposition would actually exacerbate homelessness in the city, because other homeless would be attracted to the increase in services.

Amazon's Jeff Bezos also railed against a similar corporate tax in Seattle that would have funded services for the homeless. It was repealed by the city council in June.

Dorsey boiled down his opposition to Prop C as a desire to let Breed have a shot at fixing the city's homelessness, which was the platform she successfully ran on. "Mayor Breed was elected to fix this. I trust her," he tweeted.

That didn't stop Benioff from firing back. He called out Dorsey for the tax breaks he received by opening his offices in the blighted mid-Market area, as well as the run-up in Twitter and Square's stock prices that have added billions to his net worth. "Which homeless programs in our city are you supporting?" he asked.

The two traded a few more barbs, with Dorsey saying Benioff was "distracting" and reiterating his support for Breed. Benioff responded, in turn, by saying that "if you're going to fight a relatively small tax, which is one half of one percent to help our number 1 issue, then you better prepared to talk about what you are doing versus what you don't want to do." Dorsey again reiterated his support for the mayor: "I’m supporting the Mayor’s plan. The one you've decided to ignore. She's simply asking for accountability and control. Let's listen to her and let her lead. If I’m wrong, I’ll admit it, and work with you to fix."

When reached for comment, a Square spokesperson called the city's homelessness a "humanitarian crisis" and said the company stood behind the mayor in finding a "consensus response to homelessness." Dorsey has traditionally been far less vocal on the homeless issue. He told Fortune in 2013 that he sees income inequality in San Francisco as the "responsibility" of companies in the area and he personally seeks to do his part, offering up an example by saying that every Friday he and a group of employees picked up trash around the neighborhood.

Benioff, meanwhile, has made alleviating homelessness one of his personal crusades. He partnered with a nonprofit called Hamilton Families in 2015 to launch the Heading Home campaign, which aims to help 800 homeless families get off the streets by 2020. He has raised over $30 million to do so.

At the opening ceremony of Benioff's new 1,070-foot tall Salesforce Tower in San Francisco in May, he urged tech companies to follow his lead. “We see a city undergoing major change but also facing urgent challenges," he said. “Successful cities and successful businesses go hand in hand."

I am part of Forbes' wealth team, where I write about some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world. I previously covered markets, investing and financial technology at Forbes. My reporting has taken me to the Seminole Tribe in Florida to sit down with the father of...